Yes, those are real numbers, and yes they are in an article about Penn State football, and no they are not from a drive that the defense allowed.

Just let these numbers sink in for a moment, all you fans of a team that for the better part of its first six games this season couldn't find the end zone without (insert your own joke here; if you're wondering, my favorite is Dora the Explorer).

One more time, just because it's fun:

Nine plays, 91 yards, 47 seconds, seven points.

As in, what Penn State's offense did when handed the ball inside their own ten yard line, down 21-0, with less than a minute remaining until halftime. Really.

To that point, the offense had taken a gigantic step backwards from the progress it had shown against the weak defenses of Minnesota and Michigan, moving the ball moderately well and then stalling out around the opponent's 30-yard line, a scene to which us fans had become accustomed against quality competition this season.

Rob Bolden was pulled from the game after only his second drive of the game, which ended after he failed to read a blitz, was sacked and fumbled the ball away. Paterno put in Matt McGloin, the hot hand from the past two games, to turn the offense around. McGloin responded by completing only four of eleven passes for 45 yards in his first three drives, the first two of which ended in punts, and the last of which ended in a long, missed field goal after the offense failed to gain a first down after taking over at Northwestern's 41.

The Wildcats then took the good field position back, scoring in two minutes to stretch their lead to three touchdowns. And when it rains, naturally it pours, as Penn State ended up at their own nine-yard line after committing a holding penalty on the ensuing kickoff return.

The nine. With less than a minute remaining in the half, down 21-0.

This was the perfect spot for the team to not take any unnecessary risks and stop the bleeding by taking a knee and getting to the locker room as quickly as possible to try and figure out what went wrong. This was also the moment the Washington DC chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association started planning a party for Paterno's 400th win, which would surely not happen until the Nittany Lions played Indiana at FedEx Field in two weeks.

Fortunately for us, this inauspicious moment was the start of something else altogether. It was the beginning of a legend.

The Legend of Matt "House Money," McLovin, the Ginger Assassin, the West Scranton Gunslinger – the man with more nicknames (four in that sentence alone) than wins.

Everybody reading this (excluding my sister, who knows nothing about football, but reads my blog to be supportive) knows exactly what happened after that. (And for my sister, Erin: Penn State's new red-headed quarterback went 5 of 6 passing for 63 yards, including an NFL-quality touchdown pass with less than five seconds left in the half. He would then go on to lead the offense to touchdowns on their next four drives, for five consecutive touchdown drives altogether, which is nearly unheard of at any level, and which is actually even more interesting because... wait, am I losing you? Too much football talk? Ok, I get it, I'll try to mix it up more. Love you sis, will call you soon.)

There has been a lot of chatter this week about the sudden and unexpected quarterback controversy that has emerged this week in Happy Valley. If you follow me on Twitter, you know where I stand on this – there is no controversy. With McGloin at quarterback, the offense scores points. I don't care if it's because of him, in spite of him, due to his tangible skills, or because of intangibles – the offense scores actual touchdowns. End of story.

Matt McGloin has led 25 drives this season (not counting two that ended in kneel-downs). The results? Twelve touchdowns, eight punts, four field goal attempts, and one turnover (an interception on his second pass ever). That's nearly a touchdown on every other drive.

So in playing against Minnesota, Michigan, and Northwester, McGloin hasn't exactly faced the greatest defenses in the world. I get that. But we can call the defenses of the previous three opponents progressively less horrible. I think that's fair, and not to be discounted.

The problem with the offense hasn't been the personnel – the backs and receivers are a skilled group – it's been execution, which is a mental as much as it is a physical problem, and it takes a whole lot of mental fortitude to shake off 30 minutes of mistakes and win a stare down against a 21-point deficit and 91 yards of grass. That's the intangible that McGloin brings to the team, and it is very obviously reflected in the performance of the entire offense.

Rob Bolden is a poised quarterback with a high ceiling, but he's poised to the point where he's almost robotic. He plays a little stiffly, looking like he's thinking too much, overly focused on the details. Yes, it's a good thing for a quarterback to be detail-oriented, but if his brain moves more quickly than his body, there's going to be major problems. Case in point was Bolden's fumble after failing to see a Northwestern blitzer come at him nearly head-on. Bolden will improve, to be sure, but right now he's too much science and not enough art.

For the tangible benefits, McGloin does two things Bolden can't do right now – throw the deep ball and throw the fade. The coaching staff knows this, which is why, when McGloin came into the game against Minnesota, the offense seemed to be operating from a completely different playbook.

After McGloin takes the snap, he looks downfield like a Biggest Loser contestant surveying an all-you-can-eat buffet. He's hungry for the big play, even simply targeting which can open up all kinds of options on offense. McGloin treats the check down receiver as an actual check down – a last-ditch effort before throwing the ball away – not the guy who gets the ball immediately after you see that the primary receiver is covered.

His 36-yard touchdown pass to Derek Moye in the third quarter of the Northwestern game is a perfect example – that is just not a pass that I believe Bolden can make right now. In stride and lofted over the shoulder, out of harm's way, where only the receiver can catch it.

It's impossible to answer whether McGloin is the "quarterback of the future" because a great quarterback must develop the mental strength to handle a wide variety of situations. We have no idea how he would respond to the pressure of being favored to win, of being expected to perform and win week in and week out.

But for right now, with Penn State playing like they have nothing to lose, which is how they're going to roll for the rest of the year, McGloin is the man for the job.

He's loose, he's brash, and he's playing with house money, but instead of folding, I think he's going to start letting it ride.

I remember hearing him be interviewed after the Minnesota game, and in response to being asked how he felt about starting the first game of his collegiate career against Michigan he said something like "Yeah, my buddies and I back home played football a lot and we were pretty good, so yeah I feel pretty confident about it."

So this guy is about to make his first start at home, in primetime, on national television, against a hated rival, and when asked about it, he made it sound like a game of backyard football. I love it.

McGloin's laissez faire sense of humor didn't stop there, as later in the week he went all "He Hate Me" on Kirk Herbstreit after the national college football analyst dared to question the ability of an un-recruited walk on quarterback that was third on the depth chart ahead of his first ever collegiate start.

It may have been a tongue-in-cheek remark, but this kid has a chip on his shoulder that's probably even bigger than he is obviously letting on.

And you know it's sure to grow after Terrelle Pryor dropped the classic "never heard of him" when asked about McGloin this week. Maybe in reality it's not that big a slight, but you know McGloin isn't going to see it that way.

With McGloin at quarterback, strange things happen. The players shake off bad drives. The fans don't fret about multiple-score deficits. Three-hundred pound human beings catch touchdowns. Points – many of them – appear on the scoreboard.

After this weekend, I have a feeling a whole lot of people are going to know Matt McGloin's name. Even Terrelle Pryor. Especially Terrelle Pryor.